Compelling commentary on children's health

It’s always been in breast milk, then it appeared in infant
formula and now you can find it in baby food.It’s DHA (docosahexaenoic acid).So what
is DHA and do you need to be feeding your baby DHA-supplemented baby food?

What is DHA? DHA
is a special fatty acid critical to brain and eye development in babies and
young children.Babies get a bunch
of it during the last trimester of gestation and then become dependent upon
getting DHA in their diets.DHA is
found in breast milk (as it turns out, levels in breast milk depend upon your
diet) and it first was added to infant formula here in the U.S. in 2002.

What does it do?Studies have shown that DHA, when added
to a baby’s diet at certain levels, can improve brain development and vision.While this was initially felt to be
true only in preemies, recent studies have supported a neurodevelopmental role
for DHA in term babies.And if
that is isn’t interesting enough, try this on for size: A new study released
this summer (abstract findings presented at the World Congress of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition) found a tight connection between DHA exposure in infancy and
resistance from upper respiratory infections later in childhood.Wow.While its suspected that the effects reported in this study
may be seen with the levels of DHA found in Mead Johnson’s Enfamil Lipil or
Nestle Good Start, the study was conducted among children fed Enfamil Lipil.

Here’s the problem. When it comes to brain and eye
development, no one knows exactly how much DHA a baby needs.Several organizations have taken a stab
at minimums but they’re nothing better than a stab.And these stabs are based on minimum levels proven
to make a difference.The American
Dietetic Association, for example, has suggested that infant formula contain at least 0.2%
of its fatty acid content as DHA.The American Academy of Pediatrics has been conspicuously silent on DHA
since its introduction into infant formula.

So back to our
question.Do children need DHA
in their baby food? No one knows
the answer to this question.While
we may accept the mounting data showing that certain levels in infant formula when taken at standard baby volumes are associated with improved brain development and vision, there’s no evidence that
the addition of more DHA in baby food offers any advantage.

But as with most elements of our baby’s diet,
the body takes what it needs and what remains feeds the Diaper Genie.And so it may be with DHA.But at least we all feel good believing
we’ve tried to make a difference.

The Wall Street Journal this morning reports that Gerber Products, Inc, the world’s largest and best known maker of baby food, may be for sale. Novartis, the parent company of Gerber, wants to spend more time making vaccines. It seems Nestle, the global 300-pound gorilla of infant nutrition, wants a stake in the American baby food market.

The baby food aisle at Babies R Us could get interesting. Organics are heating up and Earth’s Best is making a run for it based on their growing market share. Nestle, Gerber’s suitor, clearly has a growing interest in the use of probiotics in infant products. Mead Johnson Nutritionals, the makers of Enfamil Lipil, have made the case for DHA and ARA (long chained fats found to be important for brain and vision development) in infant formula. There’s even the suggestion that DHA and ARA are important beyond a baby’s first birthday when infant formulas aren’t used.